Cities 1.5

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”: the first line of the Charles Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities is an idea that the two cities featured in this episode’s case study know all too well. The Global South’s Nairobi, Kenya and the Global North’s Rotterdam in the Netherlands are half a world apart, but they’re each facing similar and equally dire climate consequences that are caused by and a threat to the major economic driver of import and export in their cities. But in the face of these “worst of times,” both of these cities are implementing the best and most innovative strategies they can to curb climate impact and make their key industries and transportation systems more resilient and sustainable. Featured guests:Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb has helped Rotterdam become one of Europe’s most diverse, dynamic, and multicultural cities. Thanks to his leadership, Rotterdam has evolved into an open and progressive urban centre with a strong emphasis on circularity, sustainability, and innovation. Mayor Aboutaleb has a well-earned global reputation as one of the world’s most respected and appreciated mayors. Maurice Kavai is the Deputy Director, Climate Change, for Nairobi City County. The main goal of his work is to ensure that climate actions are streamlined within Nairobi’s urban programs, and to anchor all sector initiatives and development plans into the city’s climate action plan. Nairobi urban planning strategies include projects such as their railway city master plan, which will integrate mixed-use development, including affordable housing, with the railway transport network. The city also has previous successes with co-developed, inclusive planning processes, such as that which they undertook with the Mukuru Informal Settlement.Links“Keeping 1.5°C Alive in the Global South: Life or Death,” by Pamela Escobar Vargas, Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy.Dutch landscape shifts with North Sea wind farms, onshore hubs - ReutersRoadmap ZECL: Moving towards Zero Emission City Logistics in Rotterdam in 2025 - C40 Knowledge HubCommunity-led upgrade to a Nairobi slum could be a model for Africa - The GuardianIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

July 2023 was the hottest month globally since records began. Combine that with several months filled with a series of extreme weather events - from heatwaves in Europe, North America and Asia, to wildfires in Canada and Greece - and it’s undeniable that the impacts of climate change that experts have long been warning us about are here today. And the worse news is that it’s only going to get hotter.Featured guests:Eugenia Kargbo is Freetown, Sierra Leone’s Chief Heat Officer. Her role is the first of its kind in Africa, and her duties include raising public awareness about extreme heat, improving responses to heat waves, and collecting heat impact data for her city of 1.2 million people. Her team’s Freetown the Treetown project was a 2023 nominee for the Protect and Restore Nature Earthshot Award.Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis served as the Mayor of Athens from 2019 to the end of 2023. He has worked at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has held positions in the European Parliament in Brussels and the World Bank in Kosovo. He is also the vice president of the Hellenic Agency for Local Development and Local Government, and a Greek Leadership Council member of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Links:Hot Cities, Chilled Economies: Freetown, Sierra LeoneFreetown’s highly replicable way of self-financing urban reforestation - C40 Knowledge HubFreetown the Treetown - EarthshotEleni Myrivili: A three-part plan to take on extreme heat waves - C40 Knowledge HubHeatwave tips from Athens: Cool routes app, new pocket parks and renovating a Roman aqueduct - EuronewsImage credit: © Erin Dwi Azmi C40If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

Climate breakdown is happening, and the cost of ignoring this phenomenon will be far greater than the cost of immediate action. We know that green investments promote the transition to a more resilient, prosperous, and sustainable economy. But what are the steps that cities need to take in order to shift their investments away from fossil fuels? How can policy makers support the creation of good, green jobs - while still protecting the climate?Featured guests:Daniel Zarrilli is the Special Advisor for Climate and Sustainability at Columbia University where he is supporting the creation of its new, world-leading Climate School and advising on pathways to achieve the university’s deep decarbonization goals. During his time working in the NYC Mayor’s Office, New York City committed to divesting entirely from fossil fuel funds and C40 Mayor Blasio (along with current C40 chair, Mayor Sadiq Khan of London) founded the Divest/Invest forum, an initiative aimed to build capacity and knowledge sharing for cities.Dr Savannah Cox has recently accepted the position of Lecturer in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the University of Sheffield in England. She is an interdisciplinary qualitative social scientist studying urban planning for climate change and urban climate justice, with a focus on financial systems and infrastructure. Dr Zac Taylor is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Management in the Built Environment at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. His research advances critical and practical knowledge of climate finance with the place-specific challenges of urban climate action.  LinksC40 Divest/Invest Forum"Interrupted rhythms and uncertain futures" - Sarah Knuth, Savannah Cox, Sahar Zavareh Hofmann, John Morris, Zac Taylor & Beki McElvainSpotlight On: Cities Divest-InvIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

C40 and the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy are providing an opportunity for cities to rethink conventional economic systems, like capitalism, that have led to the climate crisis. It is abundantly clear that the economic rules and systems created after WWII have led to twin crises: climate change and continued inequality. It’s necessary to unpack these theories to better understand their impacts and relation to climate breakdown and figure out more effective economic strategies that cities can use to restore justice and health to our planet. But what exactly do cities need to understand - and do - to make this happen?Featured guests:Sandrine Dixson-Declève is the co-president of The Club of Rome and an international climate change thought leader. When she is not leading The Club of Rome, she also serves as an advisor, lecturer, and facilitator for difficult conversations about the climate crisis. Recently, The Club of Rome published Earth for All – A Survival Guide for Humanity, which revisits theories behind the degrowth and wellbeing movements that The Club of Rome helped to form fifty years ago. Sandrine was recognised most recently by Reuters as one of 25 global female trailblazers leading the fight against climate change.Councillor Susan Aitken was elected to the Langside of Glasgow, Scotland, in 2012 and became Leader of Glasgow City Council - the Scottish equivalent to mayor - in 2017. Before being elected, Susan worked in a variety of policy and research roles in the Scottish Parliament and the third sector and as a freelance writer and editor specialising in health and social care policy. She is a graduate of both Glasgow and Strathclyde Universities.Links“Prosperity Beyond Growth: An Emerging Agenda for European Cities,” by Ben Rogers et al., Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy“Cities Can Lead the Energy Employment Transition … but They Must Plan for It,” by Jim StanfordThe Limits to GrowthScientist Johan Rockström Explains Earth's Climate Tipping Points - Global Commons AllianceGlasgow’s Regional Economic StrategyIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

In this engaging discussion, Tim Jackson, a renowned Professor of Sustainable Development and author, delves into the flaws of traditional economic models that ignore planetary limits. He advocates for ecological economics as a roadmap to sustainable urban policies, emphasizing the need to redefine prosperity beyond mere growth. Tim also explores the shortcomings of GDP as a policy target, the role of cities in public health and local food systems, and the importance of local action over chasing growth for true societal well-being.

In this episode, we discuss what cities can do - and are already doing - to combat climate change, while also considering how cities can communicate these policies. Communication means exchanging and listening to ideas; and in the climate context, to fight back against the propaganda of the fossil fuel industry, far-right political movements and online conspiracy theorists. Mayors and governments need to think about how they communicate with their constituents about their plans for phasing out fossil fuels and the path towards a healthier climate - especially our youth leaders, who deserve a seat at the table today to help shape the world they will inherit tomorrow. Featured guests:Andrea Everett is the Senior Director of Survey Research and Data Science at Climate Nexus. Her interest in opinion research began in graduate school, with a desire to understand how public attitudes affect foreign policy outcomes. She holds a PhD in politics from Princeton University and a BA in political science from Stanford.Lori Lodes has been the Executive Director of Climate Power since its inception in 2020. She is a communications specialist who has worked for prominent advocacy groups, unions, political campaigns, and corporations. Climate Power and Lori are also helping cities and mayors to seize the opportunities presented by the Act.Alysa, Ecrin, and Zeynep are middle school students from Toronto, Canada in Miha Isik's social awareness project class. Along with their classmates, they wrote, composed, performed, and directed the music video “No Future No Children.”Links for this episode:“The City Research and Innovation Agenda: Prioritizing Knowledge Gaps and Policy Processes to Accelerate City Climate Action,” by Cathy Oke et al, Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy5 myths about gas stoves, the latest culture war clash - Vox, 20 January 2023The cost of fossil gas: The health, economic and environmental implications for cities - C40 Knowledge HubWhat is the Inflation Reduction Act? - USA TodayClimate acIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

Striving for Climate Justice and Resilience is one of the most important goals at the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy and C40 Cities. The forthcoming Volume 2.3 of the journal will be dedicated specifically to climate justice and resilience because the people and places least responsible for the problem are the ones who often bear the largest burden, and cities need to be doing their part to make resilience more equitable. Featured guests:Geci Karuri-Sebina is an Associate Professor at the Wits School of Governance at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. Her main area of research and practice is urban planning and governance, and she also has experience in development foresight, policy, and innovation.Chandni Singh is a Senior Researcher at the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) in Bangalore and a Lead Author of the IPCC’s Assessment Report 6 in 2022 on ‘Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability.’ She works on issues of climate change adaptation, disaster risk and recovery,  and rural to urban migration within the Global South. Karen Chapple is the Director of the School of Cities, and Professor of Geography & Planning at the University of Toronto. Her main area of focus in her studies is inequalities in the planning, development, and governance of regions in the Americas. Currently, Karen is engaged in many research projects related to inequality and sustainability planning, with a focus on residential and commercial/industrial displacement.Links:“Keeping 1.5°C Alive in the Global South: Life or Death” “The Grassroots Story: Why Keeping 1.5°C is Vital from the Global South Perspective" University of Toronto is building Canada’s largest urban geo-exchange system Rainwater Harvesting in Mexico City as a Measure to ReduIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

There’s a crucial link between good green jobs and public transport - in London, and around the world. This episode features a live podcast conversation that was organised by C40 Cities and the International Transport Workers Federation and recorded at London Climate Action Week in June 2023. Inspired by the mission of delivering a fair, inclusive, and just climate transition, this session titled “Investing in public transport: boosting green jobs and climate action” includes voices from London, England, as well as representatives for its transportation industry. Featured guests:Mikaela Loach is a youth climate justice activist and co-host of The YIKES Podcast, where they break down issues like climate impacts in an accessible, intersectional, and nuanced way to guide towards unified action. She is the bestselling author of It’s Not That Radical: Climate Action to Transform Our World.Seb Dance is Deputy Mayor of Transport for London, delivering the Mayor’s transport strategy and ensuring 80% of all journeys in London are on foot, by cycle or by public transport by 2041.  Livia Spera is General Secretary of the European Transport Workers Federation (ETF), which represents over 5 million transport workers in 41 countries. She was nominated as the ETF Acting General Secretary in 2019.Paul Ainsworth has been employed as a bus driver by Go Ahead for over 20 years. He also holds a range of elected roles within Unite, one of the United Kingdom’s leading unions, and has recently been elected to the union’s national Executive Council.Links:European Transport Workers’ FederationC40 Good Green Jobs CampaignThe Future Is Public TransportPublic transport Global Coalition StatementSpotlight On: Green Jobs and a Just Transition How cities can make public transport inclusive, equitable and accessible for everyone How to make public transport an attractive option in your city Good green jobsIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

As we aim toward a 1.5 degree future, we need to fundamentally shift the way we lead our cities. One substantial change is that cities need to look to a new form of governance - one that places climate action at its heart. A critical tool for cities is a climate budget: a governance system that offers a way for cities to turn climate commitments into funded and measurable actions across their government. C40 recently worked with a group of international cities to adapt climate budgeting to their own unique urban and social contexts, and this in turn will support other cities who can more easily adopt the policy now that they can learn from these proven examples.Featured guests:Catrin Robertsen is Head of Climate Budgeting at C40, a new programme supporting cities to improve their governance systems to operationalize and deliver climate targets. Before joining C40, Catrin worked for the Climate Agency for the City of Oslo as the lead technical advisor on Oslo’s climate budget. Prior experiences include national emissions inventories and impact assessments at the Norwegian Environment Agency. Catrin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and a Master’s degree in Economics, specializing in development and natural resource economics, from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.Trond Vedeld currently works at the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR) at Oslo Metropolitan University as a research professor in urban and international studies. Trond does research in Political Economy, Public Administration and Urban Politics, Climate Governance, and Climate services and has published extensively on issues of political economy, public administration and urban politics, climate governance, and collaborative governance/co-creation in European and African cities.Links for this episode:C40 Knowledge Hub's Landing Page for all things climate-budget related“Why New York and London are betting on climate budgets” by C40 Chair, Mayor Sadiq Khan of London and Mayor Eric Adams of New York CityNorwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research"How to lead collaborative governance for climate transformation: A guide for city leaders and decision makers", by Hege Hofstad and Trond Vedeld, Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy"Oslo is Demonstrating AmbitioIf you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

According to the UN, cities generate up to 75 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions - so we know that cities are the key to unlocking many of our much-needed climate solutions. While larger cities with greater population densities have bigger ecological footprints, emissions are being generated by all cities from around the world; small but mighty cities have a critical role to play too. We all share the same coastlines, and we all breathe the same air - and it might be time to look to smaller cities who are leading the way on climate change to see what else we can be doing. Featured guests:Mayor Melissa Blaustein was elected to the city council of Sausalito in 2020, and has been Mayor since 2023. Since becoming Mayor, she has pushed for Sausalito’s own climate action plan - which is vitally important for cities of any size, especially when you’re as close to the ocean as Sausalito. From addressing sea level rise, to electrifying the city’s transportation operations, Sausalito is proving beyond a doubt that they can keep up with their C40 neighbour, San Francisco.Mayor Michael Cahill was elected as the 34th mayor of the City of Beverly, Massachusetts in 2013. Beverly might be a smaller, quieter suburb to the C40 city of Boston, but the city is driving some big sustainable ideas: from harnessing solar and geothermal technology, to petitioning the state to support much-needed green infrastructure, they’re another shining example of a small but mighty C40 neighbour who is leading the way on city climate action. Links for this episode:Better together: How cities can collaborate for faster, more effective climate actionSausalito Low Emissions Action PlanRedlining’s Legacy Of Inequality: Low Homeownership Rates, Less Equity For Black HouseholdsFossil gas researchSolar power in BeverlySolved by David MillerClimate Mayors NetworkImage credit: © Lizzie Lomax - C40If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeriesCities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/